


Zach Stone - Misc. Drabbles from Tumblr

by zach_stone



Category: Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous
Genre: Backstory, Drabble, F/M, Missing Scene, from tumblr
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-07-22
Packaged: 2018-04-10 09:27:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4386566
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zach_stone/pseuds/zach_stone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A bunch of short fics I wrote on Tumblr, some requests, some from my imagination. Enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. It Was Only A Kiss - Missing Scene Ep. 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened in the abandoned house on Kelsey Road before Andy walked in on Zach and Amy kissing?

When Amy suggests to Zach that they stay a little longer in the old, creepy house on Kelsey Road, he’s more than happy to say yes. Even though he’s trying very hard not to read into her motives too much -- she has a boyfriend after all, even if he is dumb and terrible and literally the worst -- he can’t help but grin as they sit down on their sleeping bags. His heart is racing as they sit there in the light of the flashlight and the strings of lights they’d set up earlier when they were trying to scare Andy.

“I’m sorry your prank didn’t work out the way you hoped,” Amy says to him, leaning back against the wall and looking at him.

“Eh, it’s no big deal,” he says, shrugging. “Still scared the shit out of that little shit in the end, even if it was a cheap trick.” He smiles. “Besides, I bet that footage we got was  _awesome_.”

“I’ve never been so scared in my life,” she says, shuddering. “That was some impressive stuff Andy and his friends did.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Zach says, flapping his hand at her. “Don’t give him too much credit, this place is spooky enough on its own.” He pauses, staring at his feet. “So, uh, I hope things are okay with you and Nick after that fight you had tonight.”

“It wasn’t a fight,” Amy says with a sigh. “I’m sure we’ll be fine, he just … he doesn’t get it, that’s all. Sometimes I feel like --” She stops. “Never mind, it’s stupid.”

“No no, what is it?” Zach says, shifting to look at her.

“I just feel like he doesn’t really  _see_  me, you know?” she admits. “I feel like he just sees what he wants me to be.”

“Well, I see you,” Zach says. As soon as he says it, his palms get sweaty. It’s just the truth, but it feels like a big thing to say. His words hang in the air between them.

“Yeah?” Amy says, meeting his gaze. His face feels hot.

“Yeah, of course,” he says, attempting nonchalance and failing miserably. “I always have.” It’s when he says it that he realizes how true it is, how he’s always looked at Amy like she’s every good thing in this world. He wonders if she’s noticed, if he’s been embarrassingly obvious.

Amy’s lips are pressed together as she tries to keep from smiling as big as she wants to. She says, “I’ve always seen you, too.”

Zach has never been good at reading into moments, but instinct tells him to lean forward, so he does, slowly. He has zero experience with initiating kisses, so he just watches her expression for any sign that she’s not on the same page as he is and hesitates, face so close to hers.

Amy leans in, closing the distance between them and pressing her lips to his. It’s a gentle, closed-mouth kiss, and Amy’s lips are soft and warm against his mouth. At first, even though he’s expecting it, Zach doesn’t know how to react. It’s not like he has much kissing experience to go off of, so he just passively lets Amy kiss him for a couple seconds. But then he closes his eyes and kisses her back, and his heart is beating in his chest like it’s playing a goddamn drum solo. It feels like an eternity before they part, which Zach always thought was just some dumb movie cliche but it’s never been more true. Amy’s smiling at him, and he starts to smile back, disbelief and joy competing for focus in his mind, when he realizes there’s someone watching them. He glances over to see Andy and one of the cameramen standing in the doorway. He hadn’t even heard the door open. As soon as Zach and Amy catch sight of them, Andy and the cameraman shut the door and disappear. Zach is frozen at first, not sure how to even react. He feels like he’s been caught doing something very wrong. And, when he thinks about the fact that Amy is dating the ever-annoying Nick, he realizes that maybe he has done something very wrong. He gets up and pulls the door open, but Andy and the crew are already gone. He exhales slowly and turns around to look at Amy. She looks embarrassed.

“Uh,” Zach says, unsure of where they’re supposed to go from here.

“Maybe we should head home after all,” Amy says.

“Oh,” Zach says, slightly taken aback. “Okay.”

“I don’t think I could really fall asleep here,” she says by way of explanation. It’s a weak excuse, but then again Zach doesn’t think he’ll be able to fall asleep tonight regardless of where he is.

“Yeah,” he says. “Me neither.”

They collect their things awkwardly and head outside, where Zach quickly realizes he doesn’t have a way home, what with Andy having taken the car. “Ah, shit,” he says.

“My house isn’t far from here,” Amy says. “We can just walk there.”

“Yeah, yeah, okay,” Zach says. They start walking down the road, the silence palpable. Finally, Zach says, “So…about what happened in there…”

“Zach,” Amy interrupts. “My mom and I are going out of town tomorrow.”

“Yeah, I know,” Zach says, frowning slightly.

“I think we should wait to talk about this until I get back,” she says.

“Oh, all right,” Zach says. “Is everything okay?” He’s suddenly filled with panic -- what if he sucks at kissing, what if Amy hates him, what if this was all some big prank and Nick is hiding in a bush waiting to laugh at him?

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” Amy says. “I think we both just need some time.”

“Totally,” Zach says. What he wants to say is,  _forget waiting, you’re the most perfect person I’ve ever seen and I never want to stop kissing you so can I please just be your boyfriend?_  But he keeps that to himself.

 

Later, when Zach and Amy have exchanged their goodbyes, complete with blushes and lingering smiles and Amy giving Zach’s hand a squeeze that makes his heart race, and Zach has made his way over to Greg’s house to spend the night because there’s no way he’s facing Andy after being caught kissing Amy, Zach can’t sleep just as he predicted. He listens to Greg’s muffled snores and stares at the ceiling. All he can think about is Amy. He imagines what it will be like when she gets back from vacation. He pictures her running to him and kissing him like they do in the movies. Zach rolls over and presses his face into the pillow, grinning like an idiot. He’s never felt more sure of anything than he feels sure that he and Amy are going to be together. He’s in love, and everything’s going to be perfect.


	2. Life's No Fun Without A Good Scare - Halloween Prompt Fic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Zach, Amy, and Greg visit a haunted house, Zach is determined to show off to Amy how fearless he is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on this post: http://zach-stone.tumblr.com/post/98863830687/sailorleo-imagine-ur-otp. It was supposed to be just a Zamy fic, but then Greg got involved and things got a lil out of hand. Thanks to tumblr user l4ra for demanding that I write this!

It’s a breezy October day, and Zach Stone is sitting in his room talking to his girlfriend, Amy, on Skype. It’s been a little over a month of their long-distance relationship, and things are going surprisingly well. In fact, Zach was just commenting on this with a dreamy look on his face, the kind of look that he always makes when he talks about Amy, the one his brother Andy makes fun of him for on a daily basis.

“Everything is just perfect, you know?” Zach says, resting his chin on his hands and watching Amy’s slightly pixelated face on the screen.

“Mmhm,” Amy says, laughing a little.

“What are you laughing at?” Zach says.

“You just always say that,” she says. “It’s cute.”

Zach rolls his eyes, but he’s pleased. “So, you have fall break this weekend, right? We should do something fun.”

Amy nods. “Yeah, I was looking for things to do in town this weekend online, hang on.” She squints at her screen, scrolling through a webpage. “Ooh, that sounds fun. Oh, but you wouldn’t like it, never mind.”

“What?” Zach says, leaning closer to his computer.

“There’s a haunted house coming to that farm we used to go on field trips to in elementary school, remember that place? This weekend is its opening.”

“We should go!” Zach says.

“Won’t you be scared?”

“You kidding me? I’ve got nerves of steel.”

“Zach, you scream about everything. You’re the jumpiest person I know. And you hate haunted houses,” Amy says. “You said after that incident last summer with the house on Kelsey Road that you’d never go in one again.”

“I wasn’t being literal, Amy,” Zach says, as if it’s obvious. “Besides, the Kelsey Road house was terrifying. I bet this one’s not nearly as scary.”

“I don’t know, Zach,” Amy says, skimming the website. “It sounds pretty scary. Are you sure you want to go?”

“Totally,” Zach says nonchalantly. “I won’t be scared.”

* * *

 

“Greg, you have to come with Amy and me to this haunted house,” Zach says. Greg scowls at him from the other side of his dorm room. “What’s that look for?”

“Zach, taking me to a haunted house is the absolute worst idea. You know I hate scary stuff. No way.”

“But  _Greg_ ,” Zach whines. “It’ll be fun! Where’s your Halloween spirit?”

“It’s October tenth, Zach.”

“Halloween spirit begins at midnight on October first and you know it, Greg,” Zach says. “Now will you please please  _please_ come with us?”

“No way, not after that terrifying house we went to in August to scare Andy,” Greg says. Zach huffs exaggeratedly and throws up his arms.

“Why does everyone keep bringing that up! This will be totally different and way more fun!” When Greg still seems unconvinced, Zach deflates a little and says in a calmer voice. “Okay, fine. I just wanted you to come because I’m worried I’m gonna look like a wimp in front of Amy. But I figure if you’re there and we’re  _both_ terrified, it won’t be as bad.”

“So you just want me there to make sure you don’t make a fool of yourself?” Greg shakes his head slightly. “You’re unbelievable.”

“True. But…” Zach bites his lip and raises his eyebrows at Greg, looking like a hopeful puppy.

“...Fine, I’ll go. But after this, never again!” Greg says, but it’s not with much conviction.

Anyway, Zach’s too busy doing a little victory dance to pay attention.

* * *

 

The night of the haunted house is perfect for such an outing. The air smells like pumpkin spice and autumn as the trio walks up the path to get in line for the haunted house. They’re behind a group of fourteen-year-old boys who are shoving each other and laughing nervously. Greg shifts from one foot to the other, looking around like he’s planning an escape route.

“You know, we could always go catch a movie instead,” he says.

“We already bought our tickets,” Amy says.

“Oh, right.” Greg fidgets. “You know what, maybe I should go. I’m a third wheel anyway.” He starts to back out of line, but Zach grabs his arm.

“Dude, no. You’re not a third wheel. Stay.” He lowers his voice. “C’mon, man, I need you.”

“I don’t know, Zach. This place looks really scary.” Greg looks at the doorway to the haunted house, where a layer of fog is eerily oozing out into the night air.

“Pssh, it’s so cheesy. We’ll be laughing the whole time,” Zach says, puffing out his chest. Still, when they get to the front of the line, Zach’s palms are a little sweaty and he lets go of Amy’s hand to wipe them on his jeans.

“You ready?” she asks him, smiling with excitement. He swallows.

“Born ready,” he says with more confidence than he feels.

“I’m not,” Greg squeaks. Amy leads the way into the haunted house, Zach trailing behind. He grabs Greg’s hand as they pass through the entryway.

“Just so we don’t get separated,” he says. “I’m not scared.”

The first room is semi-dark, with flickering lamps lining the walls. The standard spooky antique portraits with eyes that follow you as you walk watch the trio as they make their way across the room.

“Ooh, so scary,” Zach says mockingly. “See, Greg? Nothing to worry about.”

“Hmm,” Greg replies, still gripping Zach’s hand. A low, echoey moaning is coming from the next room.

Amy looks back at them, looking eager. “Do you guys hear that?”she says. Greg whimpers.

They enter the next room. It’s all dark, except for a bright white spotlight on a chair, where a person sits. Their head is down, and they’re wearing what appears to be a hospital gown. Their hair is long, black, and stringy, covering their face. What looks like blood splatters the floor and their exposed skin. The moaning is louder now, filling the room.

“Just keep moving,” Zach hisses, tugging Greg along. His heart is pounding. They’re close to the door to the next room.  _Okay_ , he thinks.  _This isn’t too bad._

The figure jerks up its head, revealing a grisly, bloody face and gnarled teeth. With a guttural snarl, the person leaps up and charges at them, arms outstretched and hands bent like claws. All three of them scream, and Zach sprints to the door, dragging Greg and Amy behind him. When they get into the next room, Zach presses himself against the damp wall, breathing like he just ran a marathon. Amy lets out a little giggle of shock and adrenaline, and Greg looks like he’s expecting to die at any moment.

“Did you see that guy?” Zach exclaims. “He had claws! Real claws!”

“I don’t think they were  _real_ \--” Amy begins, but she’s cut off when a crack of thunder fills the room, and suddenly rain starts to pour down on them from the ceiling.

“What the fuck!” Zach shouts. The three of them move closer together. It’s too dark to see where the door is to move forward. A flash of lightning fills the room with sudden light, and they see the doorway a few feet away. Amy leads the way, all of them moving slowly because of the rain making the floor a little slippery.

“Do you hear that?” Greg says suddenly, freezing. They all pause, and sure enough there’s a slippery, slithering sound, like something sliding across the wet ground. Something like--

“That sounds like a giant fucking snake,” Zach says, clutching Greg’s shirtsleeve. “It’s coming for us!”

“We’re almost to the door,” Amy says. “We’ve just got to hurry.”

The slithering is getting louder, closer. The small sane part of Zach’s mind tells him the sound is just a recording, that they wouldn’t have actual giant serpents crawling around the haunted house, but that doesn’t stop him from shrieking loudly when another clap of thunder echoes, and he practically tears Greg’s shirt when he tugs him forward. Amy, startled almost as much by Zach’s scream as she is by the thunder, grabs his arm and they throw themselves into the next room.

As they progress through the haunted house, their methods devolve into Greg and Zach clutching each other and shrieking while Amy steers them from room to room by gripping Zach’s bicep. At last, they make it to the final room. The glowing exit sign is at the other end.

“Thank you sweet merciful lord,” Zach says, loosening his grip on Greg’s hand. The room is suspiciously empty.

“Maybe that clown chasing us was the last thing,” Greg says hopefully, still shuddering from the memory of the leering clown mask from the previous room. 

“What’s that?” Amy says, pointing to a large mirror that takes up the entire wall where the exit is.

“Oh man,” Greg says, clearly disappointed that the terrors aren’t quite over.

Zach, who is starting to feel very conscious of the fact that he’s been screaming and clinging to Greg the entire time instead of acting like the fearless macho man he’d intended to be in front of Amy, takes his girlfriend’s hand and says, “C’mon. Let’s get this over with.”

The three of them approach the mirror. It’s not like they have much choice; they have to get close to the mirror in order to get to the exit. When they are a few feet from the door, though, the lights start to flicker and then turn off entirely, even the exit sign. They freeze, waiting. Zach feels Amy wrap an arm around his waist, pressing close to him. He can hear Greg’s nervous mouth-breathing.

The lights come back on, and in the reflection they see a hooded figure with a giant, bloody axe raised above his head, swinging down at them. They all scream and tense, closing their eyes and squeezing each other’s hands until the tendons in their arms go tight, but after a moment they open their eyes again and realize that there is, in fact, no one behind them. The reflection vanishes from the mirror. Greg bolts out of the haunted house, Amy and Zach following quickly.

* * *

 

Poor Greg still looks pale and shaken. “I swear that took ten years off my life,” he says as they walk back to Amy’s car. He keeps shaking his head. “Never again.”

Amy smiles, leaning into Zach’s side as they walk hand in hand. “I thought it was fun! That room with the spiders was the scariest.”

“Are you kidding. It was the clown, hands down,” Greg says.

“So what did you think, Zach?” Amy says. “Was it too scary for you?”

Zach waves her comment away, faking nonchalance. “No way! I wasn’t even mildly terrified.”

“Oh, of course not,” Amy says knowingly, standing on her toes to kiss his cheek. Greg rolls his eyes at them and climbs into the passenger seat.

“Since I went through that traumatic ordeal just for you, Zach, I get shotgun,” he says. Zach huffs in protest, but gets in the back seat anyway. He still feels a little sheepish for being such a weenie in the haunted house. They’ll just have to go to another spooky attraction, and this time he won’t scream the whole time. He looks out the window of the car with a smile, already concocting how he’ll convince Greg to join them for a haunted hayride.


	3. Ice Skating - Holiday Prompt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shortly before winter break during Zach and Amy's senior year of high school, Amy invites Zach to come ice skating with her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous wrote a really cute Zamy headcanon in my ask and of course I wrote it into a fic. I altered the prompt a lil bit: http://zach-stone.tumblr.com/post/104364505832/imagine-its-christmas-time-and-amy-runs-up-to

“Zach!”

Zach turns around in the school hallway to see Amy hurrying towards him. She stops in front of him and he reaches out a hand to steady her. “Whoa there,” he says. “What’s up?”

“I’ve been looking for you all day,” she says. “My mom gave me two passes for the ice skating rink and they expire tomorrow and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me?”

Zach deliberates. “I don’t know, I’m not the best skater…”

“C’mon, Zach, it’ll be fun!” Amy grabs his hand. “Who else am I supposed to go with besides my best friend?”

Zach swallows and gently removes his hand from hers, because his palm suddenly sweaty. “Well, when you put it that way…”

“So you’ll go?” she asks, beaming at him.

“Of course. I’ll pick you up at four tomorrow, how about that?”

“Perfect! You’re the best!” She hugs him and then hurries off to her next class, leaving Zach to press his forehead gently against his locker and smile to himself, at least until a couple dudes who like to pick on him accidentally-on-purpose slam into him so he smacks his forehead into the locker.

“Watch it,” one of them says to him, and the other smirks. Zach just rolls his eyes, rubbing his forehead. One day, he thinks to himself, he’s gonna show all the assholes in this school how cool and awesome he really is, and then they’ll all feel really stupid for shoving him into lockers for four years. In the meantime, though, Amy thinks he’s the best. And that’s all that matters.

 

The next day at four p.m., Zach shows up at Amy’s house and beeps the horn several times. Amy hurries out the door wearing a jacket and a hat with a little pom-pom on top, and Zach can’t help but grin at the sight of her. She pulls open the door of his car and climbs into the passenger seat, cheeks pink from the cold air outside. “Hey!” she says. “Cute sweater.”

He glances down at the slightly-too-big Christmas sweater covered in snowmen that he’s wearing, feeling a little bit like a dork. “Oh, ha, yeah, it’s stupid.”

“I like it. Very festive.” Amy turns on the radio and fiddles the knob to a holiday music station. “Let’s go!”

They drive to the skating rink, both singing along to all the cheesy songs on the radio. When they get there, Amy gives the man at the booth her passes and he gives them each a pair of skates. Zach is starting to get really nervous about making a total fool of himself once he gets on the ice, but he just smiles at Amy and puts on his skates like it’s no big deal.

Amy, who has been skating since she was little, has no problem gliding across the ice. Zach watches her for a few moments as he stands at the edge of the rink, gripping the siderail to stay upright. Amy does a few twirls and then she weaves through the other skaters and beckons to him.

“What are you waiting for?” she calls to him.

Zach exhales, stares down at the skates on his feet (the largest size they had, and they still feel a little tight in the toes), and then he lets go of the railing. He manages to slowly and jerkily skate in the general direction of Amy before he loses control of his feet and falls to his hands and knees.

“Are you okay?” Amy asks, skating over to him. He waves her away, cautiously getting up.

“Totally. I meant to do that,” he says. She laughs a little and, seeing that he's not hurt, skates off again. Zach manages to get a good rhythm going for a few feet by bending his knees and slowly pumping his arms like he’s running in slow motion, but then he loses balance and his arms pinwheel as he lands spectacularly on his ass.

“Jesus,” he says to himself, but he can’t help laughing a little. Amy skates over to his side and helps him up.

“Do you have any coordination at all?” she giggles. He blushes as she grips his arms to hold him steady.

“I have plenty of coordination when I’m not walking with literal blades on my feet,” he tells her. “Honestly, who decided this was a safe recreational activity? Look at all these children here. They have lethal weapons strapped to their legs.”

Amy just reaches up and puts a finger to his lips. He stops talking, his heart speeding up a little.

“Zach,” she says, finger still on his lips. “Relax. You’re too tense, that’s why you keep falling down.”

“What? I’m totally chill,” Zach says, speaking around her finger.

“How about this,” she says, moving her hand. “I’ll hold your hand and we can skate really slow together, so you can keep your balance. Sound good?”

Zach smiles. “Yeah. That sounds like a great idea.” As she links arms with him and they start to skate again, he adds, “But for the record, I totally could do this by myself.”

Amy shakes her head, smiling to herself and leaning her head against his arm.


	4. Surprises - Hurt/Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zach tries to surprise Amy with a visit, but things don't go as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is mostly purely indulgent hurt/comfort shit because I'm a sucker for angst and Zach being an insecure lil peanut. It's kinda longer than I meant it to be, whoops.

“Hey Amy, it’s me. Again. Sorry I keep calling you, I’m sure you’re probably busy with school and stuff. But, uh, I miss you! Call me back soon. Love you. Bye.” Zach hangs up the phone, sighing. It’s midterms, he knows that, Amy told him she’d be less available this week, but he still can’t help feeling a little abandoned. And God, so  _bored_. He didn’t realize how much of his time he spends talking to Amy on Skype, or texting her throughout the day, or having whispered phone conversations into the night. Now, his days are just go to work at Desanto’s, come home, lay on the floor for a while until his mom makes him do something, go to bed, repeat. He’s honestly considering signing up for a class or two at the local community college, just so he’ll have something to break up the monotony. And so he’ll stop leaving pathetic voicemails for Amy.

“What’s the matter with you?” Andy asks, passing by Zach and catching the mopey look on his face.

“Amy’s not answering her phone,” Zach says. “She’s really busy with school, or whatever. I know she’s probably super stressed out and trying to focus on getting everything done -- you know how she gets -- but I just miss her.”

Andy raises his eyebrows. “Why don’t you go visit her? Like, surprise her or something.”

Zach purses his lips. “You don’t think that would annoy her?”

“Dude, I find everything you do to be annoying, so if Amy can put up with all that, I’m sure she’d be happy to see you.” Ignoring the scowl Zach gives him, he adds, “Anyway, you could like, bring her food and help her study or something. So that way she still gets stuff done. I bet she’d like that.”

“Yeah,” Zach says, smiling. “You’re a genius, Andy.” He pauses, because complimenting his little brother is not something he likes to make a habit of. “I mean, I probably would have thought of that in like five minutes, but, yeah, it’s a pretty good idea.”

“Uh huh, whatever Zach.” Andy walks away. Zach glances at the clock. If he leaves now, he could beat rush hour and be at Brown University in a little over an hour. He tells his parents he won’t be home for dinner, grabs his keys, and hurries out to the car. After a quick stop to pick up Amy’s favorite comfort foods from the grocery store -- Reese’s Pieces, Kraft Mac and Cheese, and Ovaltine -- he’s on the freeway and humming along with the radio, swelling with the excitement of seeing the look on Amy’s face when he arrives.

Once he’s parked in the lot near Amy’s dorm, Zach gathers up the brown paper bag full of food and makes his way down to the building where Amy lives. She’s on the first floor, and Zach can see that the curtains on her window are slightly open. He wants to surprise her, so he tries to avoid being in view, but then he catches sight of movement inside.

A person comes into view. It’s Amy, and she’s laughing at something. She looks so cute, Zach feels his stomach do a little flip-flop. But then someone else comes into view. It’s a boy, and he also looks like he’s laughing at something. Who is that? He looks really attractive, and something in his face reminds Zach of Nick. The guy moves away from the window. Zach feels his insides turn to ice. What is that dude doing in Amy’s dorm? Why do they both look so happy? He doesn’t know what to do, what to think. In a slight panic, he stumbles away from the dorm and rushes back to his car. As he pulls out of the parking lot and heads back in the direction of home, he calls Greg.

“Hey Zach, what’s--”

“Greg, I need you to meet me at my house in an hour,” Zach says, feeling a little frantic.

“Uh, I kinda need to study tonight…” Greg begins.

“Gregory! I am in the midst of a crisis!” Zach shouts, merging sloppily onto the freeway and eliciting honks from the other drivers.

“Okay okay!” Greg says quickly. “What’s going on?”

“I can’t talk about it right now, I’m driving,” Zach replies. “Just be at my house in an hour, okay? Please?”

“Okay, I will,” Greg says, sounding a bit concerned. “Don’t crash your car, okay? Drive safely.”

“Bye Greg,” Zach says.

* * *

 

At the Stone household an hour later, Zach is pacing back and forth in his room while Greg and Andy sit on his bed, watching him.

“I think you’re overreacting,” Andy says. “I mean, it’s not like you saw them kissing or something.”

“But what if they did! Oh my God, I can’t believe this is happening.” Zach runs a hand through his hair.

“Man, come on. This is  _Amy_ we’re talking about. She’s been in love with you forever. There’s no way she’d ever cheat on you,” Greg says.

“But you didn’t see this guy!” Zach exclaims. “He’s all muscley and hot! And they were laughing! Oh Jesus, I feel like I’m gonna pass out. I can’t feel my legs.”

“Zach, will you please calm the fuck down?” Andy says, rolling his eyes.

“I will not calm down, Andrew! I’m in the midst of a crisis!” Zach’s been using that phrase religiously since he first told them what he’d seen.

“You’re being really gay,” Andy mutters. Zach flings his arms in the air.

“And now you’re being homophobic! Get out of my room!” As soon as Andy, looking thoroughly done with the whole situation, has walked out, Zach collapses onto his bed where his brother had been sitting. Greg stares at him.

“You know,” he says, “you could have just knocked on her door. Then you would have found out what was going on.”

“I guess. I don’t know, I wasn’t thinking. I panicked.” Zach rubs his hands over his face. “I was afraid this would happen,” he says in a small voice. “As soon as she moved into her dorm, I was afraid someone better would come along, someone closer, and she’d realize she’d made a huge mistake agreeing to date her idiot best friend back home.”

Greg bites his lip and looks down at his hands. “Zach…”

Zach glances at his friend, and then sits up, squinting at him. “I know that face. You know something you’re not telling me. What is it?”

“I don’t know anything,” Greg says.

“Damn it, Greg, don’t lie to me! What is it? Is Amy cheating on me? Do you know something about that?”

Greg huffs. “I’m not supposed to say anything.”

“She’s cheating on me? And you were covering for her?!” Zach looks like he might explode.

“No!” Greg says quickly. “Jesus, Zach, no. Amy’s not cheating on you. Do you really think I wouldn’t tell you if I knew something like that? No. But she texted me a little bit ago and she’s, um, she’s doing a thing. I just can’t tell you what it is.”

“Is it a bad thing?” Zach asks, tilting his head a little.

“No, it’s good. Look, I’ve already said too much, she’ll be so mad if she finds out I told you anything.” Greg glances at his watch. “Let’s go take a walk.”

“Wait, what?”

“The fresh air will calm you down,” Greg says. Zach looks at him suspiciously, but follows him downstairs and out into the street, where they start walking aimlessly down the sidewalk. Zach scuffs his feet against the pavement, shoving his hands deep in his pockets. He still doesn’t feel entirely reassured by Greg’s vague statements.

“Zach?” Greg says finally. “Were you being serious before? You really think you’re not good enough for Amy?”

Zach laughs humorlessly, not meeting Greg’s gaze. “Gimme a break, Greg. I mean, look at me. I don’t exactly scream ‘boyfriend material.’”

Greg nudges him. “That’s not true.”

“Uh huh.”

“Man, come on. You’re cool, and you’re funny. What’s not to like?”

Zach glances at Greg out of the corner of his eye. “Yeah. You think so?”

“Totally. If I was into dudes, I’d totally have a crush on you.”

Zach laughs. “Thanks, Greg.”

Greg’s phone buzzes, and he glances at it, angling it away from Zach’s line of sight. “Well,” he says abruptly, “that’s enough walking for one day, don’t you think? Let’s go back to your house.”

“Um, okay,” Zach says, brow furrowing as Greg power-walks back the way they’d come. When they reach Zach’s house, there’s another car parked outside. Zach recognizes it. “What is Amy doing here?” he says, grabbing Greg’s arm. His heart is suddenly racing. Even though earlier that day he was rushing to see his girlfriend, now he’s hesitant and nervous. His insecurities are all clamoring at the forefront of his mind, and he stops in his tracks before they reach the house. Greg looks at him.

“Dude, come on. What are you doing?”

“Uh, nothing. Just... resting... my feet.”

“Zach, we’re like, two feet from your house.”

“I know.” Zach clears his throat. “Okay, I’m all rested now, let’s go!” Greg follows him up to the house, and when they gets inside, Amy is waiting for him in the hall.

“Hey you,” she says, grinning.

“Hey,” Zach says. “What are you doing here? I thought you were busy with school.”

“I have a surprise for you!” she says, stepping forward and grabbing his hand. He lets her pull him towards the stairs. Greg follows behind them, looking amused.

Amy throws open the door to Zach’s room, and inside is a large, newsroom-quality camera on a tripod. A microphone sits on top of the camera. Zach gapes. After he’d run out of money at the end of the summer, he’d had to sell back the cameras he’d bought for his show. He’d been reluctant to do so, since it meant he didn’t have any way to make new content if he ever decided he wanted to, but he hadn’t had much choice.

“Wh-- Amy, where did you get these?” he says, stepping forward to get a closer look at the camera.

“My roommate has a friend who’s in the journalism program, and he told me they got a bunch of new equipment and they were selling the old stuff to journalism students for practically nothing. I told him my boyfriend had to sell his cameras, so he hooked me up with this.” Amy looks extremely proud of herself. Zach feels something falling into place in his brain.

“Your roommate’s friend… is he like, really buff and good-looking? Kind of Nick-like?”

Amy frowns. “Uh… I mean, I guess vaguely? Why?”

Zach feels a rush of embarrassment and relief all at once. “Um, Amy, can I talk to you about something?”

Greg awkwardly shuffles out of the room. “I’m gonna go, uh, hang out with Andy,” he says.

“Zach?” Amy says. “What’s going on? Is everything okay?”

“I went to Brown today,” he says. “I knew you were busy with school, and I wanted to surprise you and bring you food and help you study. It was totally my idea and not Andy’s so if he says anything don’t believe him.” Amy laughs a little, but she still looks confused. “Anyway, I uh, I got to your dorm and I saw you and some guy in your room…”

“Oh, Zach,” Amy says, understanding. “Did you think…?”

“I guess that was just your friend giving you this stuff for me, huh?” he says. “I’m an idiot.”

Amy sits down on his bed and he joins her, looking sheepish. “Zach, did you really think I was… cheating on you?” It’s painful for her to even speak the words.

“I don’t know,” Zach says, putting his head in his hands. He peeks out at her from behind his fingers, and he sees the hurt on her face.

“Do you not trust me?” she asks.

“No, no, of course I trust you,” he says, grabbing her hand. “It’s just… well, I mean, you’re far away. Surrounded by guys way cooler and hotter and smarter than me. Guys who’re going to school instead of just working at the grocery store…”

“Zach…”

“...and I’m just so scared one day you’re gonna wake up and realize how stupid it is to be dating me.” He lets go of her hand so he can cover his face again. Amy frowns, sticking out her bottom lip as she watches her boyfriend, her sweet, ridiculously insecure boyfriend, hide in shame.

“Hey, you,” she says, tugging his hands away from his face. His eyes are closed, not wanting to meet her gaze. She just leans forward and gently kisses his forehead, and then his nose, and then his cheeks, and then finally his lips. He feels weirdly like he might cry. She brushes a hand through his hair and pulls back to look at him. “Listen to me, okay? And I mean really listen.”

He nods, biting his lip.

“I love you. I think you’re the nicest, funniest, coolest guy I know. And I happen to find you incredibly hot.” She smiles, seeing the flush spread across his cheeks. “And you can think whatever you want, but I am not going to wake up and think I’m stupid for dating you. I’d be stupid not to date you. You’re the love of my life.”

Zach blinks at her, a smile twitching at the corners of his mouth. “Whoa. Wait, do you mean that? That’s big. You’ve never said that before.”

Now it’s Amy’s turn to blush. “I mean, yeah.”

Zach grins, a goofy grin that takes up his whole face. He kisses her, hands gently cupping her face to hold her close to him. “God, I love you too. You’re it for me, Amy. I’m serious. I love you so much. I’m sorry for being an idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot. But it’s okay.” She hugs him tight. “So, wanna try out this excellent video equipment? Start a new reality show?”

He keeps his arms around her. “Hmm, maybe in a bit. I wanna just stay like this for a while.” He presses his nose into her hair. “I missed you.”

She laughs, tracing the buttons on his shirt. “I missed you, too.”


	5. Missing Scene between Ep. 4 & Ep. 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Zach sees Amy and Nick kissing for the first time, he and Amy have a talk.

Zach is sitting on his front porch step, staring mopily out at the street. The camera crew has the day off, and what with Christy screwing him over (ironically by  _not_  screwing him) and seeing Amy and Nick kiss last night, he’s glad there are no cameras around to capture his dejection. He pulls out his phone and is scrolling through Facebook to creep on Nick’s profile when he hears steps approaching and a familiar voice says, “Hey, you!”

“Amy!” he says, quickly setting down his phone. “Hey, what’s up?”

“No camera crew today?” she asks, looking around.

“Nah, it’s their day off.” He gestures to the space beside him on the step, and she takes a seat.

“So, how was your big date with Christy the other night?” Amy asks, hugging her knees loosely to her chest.

“Well, she and I are no longer going out, so…” Zach scrunches his nose. “You tell me.”

“Oh, Zach, I’m so sorry,” she says, putting her hand on his arm. “What happened?”

“She basically told me that the only reason she wanted to be with me was for my cameras.” He sighs, pressing his forehead to his knees. “I should have known.”

“That’s awful,” Amy says. “I’m sorry. I know you really liked her.” She looks at the ground when she says this, voice quiet.

“Yeah, well.” Zach lifts his head and tries to smile. “At least I got to be the one who dumped her. Or fired her. Whatever.”

“That is a plus,” Amy says. Her hand is still on his arm. Why is he so nervous and tingly?

“Enough about my sad weekend,” he says. “What’d you do last night? I stopped by your house with Mighty Ducks, but…” He remembers the scene from last night vividly, Nick kissing Amy and the way she’d smiled as they pulled away. He clears his throat, stomach feeling tight and sick. “But, um, you weren’t home.”

“Oh, actually, I was out with Nick last night,” she says. She gets a little blushy and giggly just saying it, and Zach feels as if someone has poured acid down his throat. He forces the feeling down and tries to act chipper.

“No way! Nick? From the gym? You, uh, doing an evening workout or something?” Zach is talking far too loud and fast.

“No, actually, we went on a date,” Amy says.

“Get out of town,” Zach says, resting his chin on his fist and plastering on a grin.

“I know,” Amy says, smiling back. “He’s really sweet. It was nice.”

“Trainer and boyfriend, very useful guy,” Zach says.

“Oh, he’s not my boyfriend,” Amy says. “It was just one date, I don’t know if anything will come of it. It was just a nice little thing. But we’re not committed.”

“Hm,” Zach says, his fake smile fading into a smaller, more real one.

“I’m sorry I missed you, though,” Amy says. “You know how much I love watching Mighty Ducks.”

“Yeah. Well, we could do it tonight, if you’re not busy?” Zach offers.

“I’d love to,” she says, looking pleased. “I have to meet Nick for a training session in a few minutes, but wanna come over at five? I promise I’ll be home this time.”

“Cool, yeah,” Zach says.

“I really am sorry about Christy,” Amy says. “You sure you’re okay?”

Zach shrugs. “Just kinda sucks that the first time a girl likes me, she just likes me for my crew, you know?”

“Hey, this is not the first time,” Amy says. “I’m telling you, Zach, girls like you. You just haven’t seen it yet.”

“Sure, Amy.” He shakes his head. “I don’t exactly scream ‘boyfriend material.’ It’s okay, though, really. A girl like Christy… she wasn’t the right girl for me.”

“Yeah?” Amy asks.

Zach looks at her, his heart leaping in his throat. The air feels so still between them. He wants to kiss her. Maybe he should. She’s looking at him in this way, like maybe she’s thinking the same thing.

Amy’s phone beeps a text message alert, and the spell is broken. They both jump a little, and Amy grabs her phone. “Oh, it’s Nick,” she says. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking on his part, but Zach thinks she sounds disappointed. “He’s waiting for me at the gym.”

“He’s already so muscley, why is he in such a hurry to work out?” Zach says. Amy laughs a little.

“He thinks it’s fun.” When Zach wrinkles his nose, she laughs again and rubs his shoulder. “Anyway, you’re right about Christy. You deserve someone who appreciates you for you, famous or not.”

Zach looks down. “Maybe. But it’s good we broke up. I think I’m just gonna focus on getting famous now, not on a girlfriend. You know?”

Amy’s smile fades slightly. “For sure,” she says. She stands. “I should get going. But I’ll see you at five, right?”

“You got it,” Zach says. He wonders if he’s said the right thing. But Amy’s eagerness when she’d talked about going on a date with Nick, and the way they’d looked after that kiss… he waves to Amy as she walks away.  _It’s never going to happen_ , he thinks.


	6. Vacation - Prompt Fic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From otpprompts: Imagine your OTP having to share an air mattress for the night. Person A is already in bed and comfortable, and person B, very tired from the day, flops down on the other side, thus launching A into the air.
> 
> (mostly platonic Zach x Amy, set when Zach and Amy are 17)

“How can there only be two air mattresses?” Zach complains, peering into the closet as if another mattress will magically appear. He’s spending a few days with his parents, brother, and Amy in a beach house over spring break. The rental information online had stated that it slept six people even though there was only one bedroom, but apparently that meant a queen bed in the bedroom and two full-size air mattresses in the closet.

“Well,” Zach’s mom says, rubbing her eyes. “I guess you and Andy can share a mattress.”

“What?!” both brothers shout in unison.

“There’s no way I’m sharing a bed with him,” Andy says firmly.

“Yeah, I’m not going to cuddle up with Mitt Romney Jr. over there, gross.” Zach shudders. His mother sighs. It’s late, and she’s already had to deal with Zach and Andy bickering the whole car ride.

“Okay, well, I’m going to bed, so you all need to figure this out,” she says. She heads back to the bedroom and closes the door.

“Zach, why don’t you and I just share a bed?” Amy suggests.

“I vote yes on that plan!” Andy interjects.

“Oh,” Zach says, turning a little pink. “Uh, I mean, are you sure?”

“Yeah, it’s no big deal,” Amy says. “We’ve had sleepovers before, and when we were kids we used to sleep in the same sleeping bag, remember? That one time on my trampoline?”

He laughs nervously, remembering perfectly even though it was ten years ago. “We’re not seven years old anymore, Amy.”

“Well I’m fine with it,” she says. “Unless you  _want_  to sleep with Andy…”

“Oh God okay we can share a bed.” Zach plugs in the pump and starts inflating the mattress. Andy claims the middle of the living room for his bed, so Zach and Amy put theirs behind the couch.

“I’m going to change really quick,” Amy says once they’ve finished putting the sheets on the mattress. Zach nods, sitting on the arm of the couch. Andy, who is already in his pajamas and under the covers, gives his brother a look.

“What?” Zach says.

“Sharing a bed with Amy, huh?” Andy says, raising his eyebrows.

“You’re gross.” Zach throws a couch pillow at his little brother. “Like she said, it’s no different than when we were kids.”

“Oh, sure,” Andy says, throwing the pillow back at him. “I can think of one thing that’s different.”

“What are you talking about, idiot?” Zach says.

“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” Andy says. “You  _like_  her.”

Zach turns red. “Shut up. You don’t know anything.”

“Bathroom’s all yours, Zach,” Amy says, appearing behind him. He startles, almost falling off the couch. Amy’s wearing a giant shirt from her summer camp and a pair of tiny pajama shorts, and her hair falls messily in front of her face from being let out of a ponytail. Zach clears his throat and darts into the bathroom. Amy’s brow creases and she looks to Andy.

“What’s up with him?” she asks. Andy just shrugs and rolls over, smirking to himself.

When Zach emerges from the bathroom wearing a T-shirt and basketball shorts, he sees Amy is already snuggled under the covers. Her eyes are open, but she looks comfy and ready to sleep.

“Zach, will you get the light?” she whispers. He nods, stifling a yawn as he clicks off the light and the room grows dark, just a little light from the streetlamp outside the window coming in. He feels exhausted, and he’s glad because if he wasn’t then he has no idea how he’d be able to fall asleep with Amy right next to him. Rubbing his eyes, he stumbles over to the air mattress and flops down onto it.

He didn’t realize quite how much force was in his flop, but apparently it was a lot, because his side of the mattress sinks down and Amy lets out a yelp as she is literally launched into the air.

“Shit!” Zach hisses as Amy lands back on the mattress with a soft  _flump_. “Oh my God are you okay?”

Amy, after she catches her breath, starts to laugh. Zach can’t help but laugh a little, too, and soon Amy’s laughing so hard there are tears in her eyes. Andy yells over at them to shut up, he’s trying to sleep,  _god_ , but they just can’t stop.

Finally, Amy wipes her eyes and says in a hushed voice, “That was  _ridiculous_! Did you do that on purpose?”

“No, I swear!” Zach says, laying gingerly back against the pillows. Amy follows suit, turning on her side to face him. They both get under the blankets and Zach looks at the way the yellow light from the window falls against her face. She smiles at him, and he feels his chest tighten.

“I’m sleepy,” she whispers.

“Me too,” he replies. She blinks slowly, and then reaches over and pats his shoulder.

“Goodnight,” she says. She closes her eyes and he swallows hard. He doesn’t want to close his eyes yet, but he feels slightly creepy just staring at her, so he rolls over onto his back. The bed really is small, and he can feel her bare leg brush up against his. He quickly pulls it away, cheeks red, and closes his eyes, turning his back to her.

 

Zach is awakened when a jolt sends his body flinging off the mattress, landing back with a thump as his eyes fly open. “Fuck!” he yells, confused and terrified. He hears Amy’s laughter and turns over to see her laying belly-down on the bed, clearly having just thrown herself down hard to launch him.

“What the hell?” he groans, rubbing sleep from his eyes. Amy’s still giggling.

“Payback,” she says simply, propping herself up on her elbows. “Nice bedhead.”

Zach clutches his head, feeling his hair sticking up. “Rude. You know,  _my_  catapulting was accidental.”

“And mine was hilarious.” She sits up. “I’m sorry, though.”

He smiles, rubbing the back of his neck. “It’s okay. It was kinda funny.” He reaches over and pokes her stomach. “Boop.”

She shakes her head, grinning at him. “C’mon, let’s get some breakfast.”


	7. Surprise Party - Prompt Fic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt from tumblr user ohscarfy in which Zach throws himself a birthday party. Platonic Zamy cuteness as a bonus.

“Guess whaaaat,” Zach sings, prancing into the dining room one morning. His family looks up at him with trepidation in their eyes.

“What is it, Zach?” his mom asks, pouring him some orange juice.

“My seventeenth birthday is in exactly one week!” Zach says, a huge grin on his face.

“Is it really that soon already?” his father says, his eyes flicking back to the newspaper in front of him. Zach deflates.

“You forgot?”

“I didn’t forget you had a birthday, son, it just snuck up on me,” his father says. “Now eat your breakfast.”

Zach stabs his eggs dejectedly with a fork. Andy squints at him.

“What’s your problem?” he asks.

“Andy,” his mother starts.

“I can’t believe none of you remembered my birthday,” Zach huffs.

“Oh honey, I didn’t forget your birthday,” his mom says.

Zach perks up. “Oh good! So I just wanted to let you know, I’ve been a little jumpy lately, so maybe just yell ‘surprise!’ and don’t blow horns or anything too crazy.”

“What are you talking about?” Andy says.

“For my surprise party. I mean if you already bought horns or whatever, that’s fine. I can just wear earplugs when I walk in the door.”

“Dude, no one’s throwing you a surprise party,” Andy says, laughing.

“Sure,” Zach says, winking and kicking Andy under the table. “Don’t worry, I’ll act surprised.”

“You’re an idiot,” Andy says.

“Boys,” their father warns.

Zach makes a face at Andy and goes back to eating his eggs. He’ll have to confirm with Greg that the surprise party is happening. Andy’s just fucking with him, right?

 

“Greg,” Zach says, as soon as his best friend opens the front door. “Is there a surprise party for me next week? I know you may have promised not to tell me but I’ll still act surprised, so tell me.”

“Uh, hey man,” Greg says, stepping back to let Zach into the house. “What about a surprise party?”

“For my birthday next week! There is going to be a party, right?” Zach walks into Greg’s kitchen and pours himself a glass of milk, rummaging around in Greg’s cupboards for a bag of chips.

Greg pours himself a glass as well and sits next to Zach at the kitchen counter. “I haven’t heard anything about a party, Zach.”

Zach pauses mid-sip, almost spilling milk all over himself. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah,” Greg says. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you wanted a surprise party…”

“Of course I want a surprise party!” Zach exclaims. “I’ve never had a surprise party before. I’ve been hinting about it for months! I can’t believe this.” He shakes his head. “Does no one love me?”

“That seems a little dramatic,” Greg says. Zach ignores him.

“I have to do everything myself,” he says, munching moodily on a chip. “I’ll just have to throw myself a surprise party.”

“I don’t think that’s how surprise parties work,” Greg says.

“Come on, Greg. I’m the perfect man for the job. Think of all the cool parties I’ve thrown Amy over the years.”

“Those have all been awesome, man,” Greg agrees.

“See? I’m a party-throwing master. It’ll be great, you’ll see.” He downs the last of his milk and stands up. “I’ve gotta get planning. A week isn’t much time, but I’ll figure something out. See you later!” He rushes out the door, leaving Greg watching him leave with a bemused expression.

 

Three days before Zach’s birthday, Amy runs into him at the dollar store looking at streamers. “Hey!” she says, coming up behind him. He jumps up from where he’s squatted down looking at some purple streamers and turns around.

“Oh, hey Amy,” he says.

“Whatcha doin?” she asks, glancing at the shopping basket he has next to him that’s filled with balloons and party poppers. “Throwing a party?”

“Yes, my surprise birthday party,” Zach says. “Which reminds me, will you send out invitations for me?”

“What?” Amy says, brow creasing in confusion. “Zach, did you say you’re throwing yourself a surprise party?”

“Well, no one else was gonna do it!” he says, like it’s obvious. “And you of all people know how great my parties are.”

“Yeah, I do,” Amy says with a faint smile. “But Zach, how is it going to be a surprise if you’re the one throwing it?”

“I’m going to pretend to be surprised. And people are going to jump out and yell ‘surprise,’ so it still counts.” He reaches into his back pocket and hands Amy a small stack of envelopes. “So like I was saying, can you hand these out? I don’t have time, what with the decorating and the DJ to find and the jumping castle…”

“The jumping… you know what, never mind. I’ll make sure these get to the right people,” Amy says, taking the invitations.

“You’re the best!” Zach says, grabbing her in a tight hug. She smiles, then winces.

“Okay,” she wheezes after he lets go. “I’ll see you later. Good luck with uh, that other stuff.”

Zach salutes her and then goes back to looking at streamers. Amy shakes her head, regarding him fondly for a moment before heading out of the store.

Once she’s back in her neighborhood, she shuffles through the invitations until she finds the one that says  _AMY PAGE_  in Zach’s blocky handwriting. She opens it and reads through the information:  _Zach’s 17th SURPRISE birthday party!!!! Come to Zach’s house @ 4PM on Saturday, ready to SURPRISE HIM! Zach will show up at 4:15 so make sure you are there in time to hide for the SURPRISE!!!!_

Amy snorts and closes the invitation. She has to admit, she feels bad for not throwing Zach a surprise party already, considering all the amazing birthday parties he’s thrown her over the years. He’s such a good friend, and he always goes all out and really shows how dedicated he is to making it the best party ever. Amy weighs the invitations in her hands, an idea forming slowly in her mind.

 

It’s Zach’s birthday, and he barrels down the stairs that morning to the kitchen, where his mom has made pancakes for breakfast. His family is already at the table waiting for him.

“Happy birthday, sweetie!” his mom says.

“Today is gonna be the best birthday ever,” Zach announces, sitting down and piling several pancakes onto his plate. “And you all know where you’ll be at 4 o’clock this afternoon, right?”

“Probably in my room,” Andy says.

“I thought I might go down to the store and check on inventory,” his father adds.

Zach frowns at them, then pauses. “Okay, I see what you guys are doing. I’ll play along.” He drenches his pancakes in syrup, missing the look his parents give each other.

After breakfast, Zach sets to work decorating the living room with streamers, balloons, a birthday banner, and twinkle lights. He triple-checks that the ice cream cake in the freezer is intact, and then sets up a seven-hour playlist on his iPod, ready and waiting to start playing as soon as the party begins. (He’s told Greg it’s his job to press play as soon as Zach walks in the door, since he couldn’t find any DJs to hire.)

Around 3:30, Zach says loudly, “Okay, I’m going to go out for a little bit! See you around, oh, I don’t know, fourish?” He walks out the door and gets in his car to drive around for a bit, giving his guests time to arrive and hide. At 4:10, Zach turns back into his neighborhood. He’s surprised he doesn’t see any cars parked near his house, but he supposes that his guests are just parked farther away as part of the surprise. He smiles -- what great friends. Zach gets out of the car, barely able to contain himself. Even though he knows exactly what’s waiting on the other side of the door, he still feels all jittery knowing that he’s about to have his first-ever surprise party.

“Boy, I sure can’t wait to go inside!” he says loudly as he unlocks the front door. Then he throws it open, arms out and an expression of joy plastered on his face. But there’s nothing waiting for him in the living room. No one turns on the lights, no Jason Derulo starts blasting. No one jumps up to shout surprise. Instead, Zach finds himself in the middle of his living room, alone, the decorations looking a little pathetic in the dimness. He flips on the light switch, frowning as he glances behind the couch and under the coffee table.

“Where is everyone?” he wonders aloud. “Mom? Dad? Andy?” He looks around the whole house, even running upstairs to see if Andy is in his room. There’s no one home. Dejected, Zach slumps back downstairs and sits on the couch.  _No one’s coming_ , he thinks to himself. This is the most embarrassing birthday party ever.

“Zach?” Amy’s voice floats in from the foyer. She walks into the living room holding a present. “Sorry I’m late! Where is everyone?”

“No one came,” he responds dully. “Amy, am I a loser?”

“Of course not,” she says, hurrying over to him and setting the gift on the coffee table.

“I can’t even throw myself a surprise party,” he says, shaking his head.

“Aw, Zach,” Amy says, putting her arm around him. “Hey, you wanna come over to my house for a bit? You can open your present from me and then we can watch Mighty Ducks! I know it’s not what you had planned, but it’ll still be fun.”

Zach smiles a little. “Yeah, okay.” The two friends walk two doors down to Amy’s house. She unlocks the door and gestures for him to go in ahead of her. “Jeez, Amy, it’s dark in here,” he tells her, walking to the living room doorway and flicking on the lights.

About twenty people pop up from various corners of the room, shouting, “SURPRISE!” Zach can only gape as he takes it all in. The living room has been decked out in party decorations; he can see a buffet table in the dining room through the doorway on the other side of the room; and best of all, Greg is standing at a rented DJ turntable, waving at him with a huge grin on his face.

“Happy birthday,” Amy says, coming up behind him and handing him a huge party hat that says “Birthday Boy” on it. Zach puts it on and grabs her in a hug.

“You,” he says, “are the best friend ever. Holy shit! Amy, this is everything I wanted!”

“Wait, it gets better,” she says, grabbing his hand and leading him over to the window overlooking the backyard. Outside, there’s a jumping castle.

“Oh my god, I love you,” Zach says, laughing a little in awe. Amy flushes at this, but she just pats him on the back.

“What’re friends for?” she says. He glances down at her, his smile softening. After a second, he clears his throat and looks away, cheeks also a little red.

“Guess I’d better say hi to everyone else, huh?” he says, spotting his parents talking to Amy’s mom in one corner of the room.

“Yeah, probably,” Amy says.

The two walk away from the window and Amy watches as Zach makes his way through the guests, saying hello and expressing his surprise again and again. She leans back against the wall, feeling proud of herself.

 

The party is a roaring success. Greg is actually a pretty decent DJ, and Zach has almost too much fun on the jumping castle after devouring three slices of cake. Finally, after presents and dancing and dinner, Amy’s mom is asking everyone to go home. Zach and his parents and Andy stay to help clean up a little bit, even though Zach protests that he shouldn’t have to clean on his birthday, and Andy protests that he shouldn’t have to clean when it isn’t his house. When the Stone family is leaving, Zach gives Amy another big hug.

“I can’t thank you enough for this,” he says. “Seriously, this was the best birthday ever.”

“Did it measure up to the famous Zach Stone parties, do you think?” she asks.

“Oh, definitely. I’ve taught you well,” he says, laughing. She laughs too.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she tells him. “Happy birthday, Zach.”

Zach and his family say goodbye and head down the street back to their house. Amy shuts the door, still smiling, holding onto that “I love you” from Zach for the rest of the night.


	8. Kittens - Prompt Fic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anonymous prompted: Zach and Amy are planning on adopting a kitten from the local animal shelter and Zach somehow ends up going there on his own and the animal shelter is like really run down and Zach feels sorry for the animals so he takes dozens of cats and dogs home with him and of course he's incredibly proud of himself for doing a good deed and he doesn't think about the consequences
> 
> And well, that's pretty much exactly what this is.

“Aw, Zach, look at this one! It’s purring!” Amy kneels down to pet the kitten at her feet. She and Zach are at the local animal shelter, scoping out the kittens. They’d been talking about getting a pet for a while, and since they’ve lived together for several months now and everything’s been going great, they both agreed that it was a good time. Amy’s still questioning how responsible Zach will be with a pet, but he _has_ grown up a lot since they’ve started dating. Besides, right now a kitten is climbing onto Zach’s shoulder from where he sits in front of an open cage, and it’s the cutest thing Amy’s ever seen. She can’t resist.

“I think this one likes me,” Zach tells her, huffing out a little laugh when the kitten’s tail tickles his neck. “Amy, they’re all so cute! How can we choose?”

“We’re closing up soon, but you two are welcome to come back and play with them more tomorrow,” the shelter employee tells them. “We actually recommend that you come in and get to know an animal a little before you adopt, to make sure it’s a good fit.”

“We’d love to,” Amy says, walking over to pick the kitten up off of Zach and petting it. “I have to work tomorrow, but we’ll definitely be back on Thursday.”

“Great, we’ll see you then,” the employee says, smiling and taking the kitten from Amy. As the two leave, Amy practically has to drag Zach out of the building.

“I can’t wait to go back,” he says.

“I know. I’m so happy we’ll be able to give a little kitten a home!” Amy says. “I feel so bad for animals in shelters, I want them all to get adopted.”

“What will happen to them?” Zach asks.

Amy shrugs. “This is a no-kill shelter, so I guess they’ll just stay there until someone gives them a home.”

Zach frowns, glancing back at the shelter longingly.

 

The next day, Amy’s at work all day and Zach can’t stop thinking about all the animals in the shelter who might never get homes. He gets in his car and drives over the shelter. The employee from the day before is there, and he seems surprised to see Zach there.

“I didn’t expect you back until tomorrow,” he says.

“Yeah, I just wanted to see the animals again,” Zach says. “Hey, I saw a sign outside that said something about this location closing? Are you moving to a new building?”

The employee sighs. “I wish. We can’t afford to keep the shelter open anymore, so we’re going out of business in a couple weeks.”

“What will happen to all the animals?” Zach says.

“Well, most of them will go to other shelters in the area, but unfortunately we have a lot of older animals that the shelters are hesitant to take, so we may have to put them down.”

“What?!” Zach shouts. The employee shushes him, saying something about the loud noise disturbing the animals, but he’s not listening. The gears in his head are turning, trying to think of a way to save all those cats and dogs he saw yesterday. He remembers that his dad had let him borrow his credit card to buy the kitten and some supplies for having a pet. He turns to the employee with a big grin on his face. “How many animals do you have right now?”

 

Amy walks up the stairs of her apartment building, digging around in her bag for her keys. She puts them in the lock of her door, pausing when she hears what sounds distinctly like a dog bark from the other side. Was Zach watching Air Bud again? She opens the door and Zach immediately shouts, “Quick close the door! They might get out!”

“They--?” Amy stops short, closing the door and staring at the living room, trying to process what’s in front of her. Zach is sitting on the couch, petting a large, fluffy cat that’s on his lap. There are four other cats on the couch. At least five kittens are running around on the floor, and Amy can still hear muffled dog barks coming from their closed bedroom door.

“Welcome home!” Zach says. Amy just gapes at him. “The shelter was going out of business and a lot of these animals would have been put down, so I adopted them!”

“Zach? How many animals are in our house right now?” Amy says slowly.

“Um, ten cats and four dogs. Also one big lizard. He’s in the kitchen sink.”

Amy makes a strangled noise of horror and hurries over to the sink. There’s an iguana in her sink, giving her a beady stare. She turns to stare at Zach, who seems completely oblivious to the absolute absurdity of the situation. Which isn’t surprising, really, but she’d really hoped that maybe Zach had matured _just_ enough to not pull something like this.

“Amy? Are you okay?” he says, worry creasing his brow.

“Why exactly would you think this is a good idea?” she exclaims.

“They were going to _kill_ these animals!” Zach says, hissing the word “kill” like the pets will understand him. “I couldn’t let them do that. I did a good deed! We’re animal saviors!”

“Zach, we live in a one-bedroom apartment. There’s barely room for us, let alone fifteen animals. How are we going to afford to feed them all? Where are we going to put all the litter boxes for these cats? Who is going to walk all those dogs? And you know lizards need a big tank, where are we going to put that?”

“We could get rid of the TV…?” Zach suggests weakly. His excitement is faltering as he starts to process the truth of what Amy is saying. The cat he’s been petting grows annoyed with him and swats at him with its claws before leaping off his lap. “This was a bad idea.”

“Just a little bit,” Amy says, stepping over a kitten and sitting next to him. “I know you were trying to save these animals, but Zach, we just can’t afford them all. And I’m sure there are lots of families who would want these pets.”

“But what if they don’t all get adopted?” Zach says. “The shelter’s going out of business because not enough people are going there!”

“We need to bring all of these pets back,” Amy tells him. “And then we’ll figure out how to get more people to adopt the pets, okay?” She rubs his back.

Zach sighs. “Okay. But we still get to keep one, right?”

“Of course,” Amy says, smiling at him.

 

When they show up back at the shelter, the employee looks crestfallen. “Are you here to get your money back and return the animals? I knew this would happen.” He shook his head. “No one can take on that many pets at once.”

“Well, we are bringing the pets back,” Amy says, smiling sympathetically. “I think my boyfriend got in a little over his head.” She glances at Zach, who looks sheepish. “But we’re not asking for our money back.”

“Huh?”

“I don’t want any of the pets to get put down,” Zach says. “So we put up signs saying the shelter was giving away the rest of the animals for free, and there are a bunch of people ready to come in tomorrow morning to pick them up.”

“But we also didn’t want your shelter to lose revenue on your last sale,” Amy adds. “So we’re not asking for the money back.”

“I don’t know what to say,” the employee says. “This is so kind!”

“Is this something I could get on the news for?” Zach says suddenly. “Do people get on the news for doing good deeds?”

“Zach, not why we’re doing this, remember?” Amy says pointedly. The employee stares at them, bemused, but Zach just huffs out a relenting sigh and lets it go. For now, anyway.

The three of them bring in the animals back into the shelter from the car, and the employee counts them up, frowning. “We’re missing one.”

“Oh, we did keep one for ourselves,” Amy says. “We were going to take one of the kittens, but Zach got attached to this old fluffy grey one, so we’re keeping her instead.”

Zach holds out his hand, where the cat had left a scratch earlier. “See, she scratched me!”

The employee furrows his brow, but he’s not one to look a gift horse act of charity in the mouth, so he simply smiles. “I’m sure she’ll be a perfect fit,” he says. Zach looks fondly down at the scratch on his hand, nodding.

“Me too,” he says.

 

 


End file.
